Linezolid-resistant mucoid Staphylococcus haemolyticus from a tertiary-care centre in Delhi.

We report an unusual morphological mucoid variant of Staphylococcus haemolyticus associated with linezolid resistance from a patient with sepsis. Linezolid resistance and mucoid character together made this pathogen difficult to treat. To our knowledge this is the first such report.

Awareness of changing trends in epidemiology of dengue fever is essential for epidemiological surveillance.

Dengue has become endemic in India with outbreaks occurring almost every year. The seroprevalence and serotypic data of the last 7 years in samples obtained from suspected dengue patients from a tertiary care hospital were analyzed. Out of 7846 serum samples received in the virology laboratory from suspected dengue cases during 2002 to 2008, 2366 (30.15%) were serologically confirmed. Serotyping was done using mRT-PCR. All the four serotypes were detected in 2003, while data in 2004, 2005 and 2006 revealed the the predominance of Den-3. In the year 2007 predominance of Den-2 was observed, whereas in 2008 Den-1 was the most common serotype isolated. Overall, Den-2 and Den-3 were the most predominant serotypes during 2003-2007 but Den-1 replaced these strains in the year 2008. Since the emergence of a new predominant strain can lead to the occurrence of an outbreak, presence of Den-1 in the year 2008 would pose an alarming situation before us. Well-targeted population-based epidemiological studies are urgently required to control dengue menace.

Cytomegalovirus infection: an Indian perspective.

Human cytomegalovirus (CMV) poses an important public health problem as it may cause serious morbidity and mortality in congenitally infected newborns and immunocompromised patients, most notably transplant recipients and HIV-infected persons. It is probably one of the most common infections known to humans and is characterized by a self-limiting infection in healthy individuals. CMV infection is the single most frequent cause of infectious complications in the early period following kidney transplantation Post-transfusion cytomegalovirus infection is of concern in the immunocompetent as well as in certain categories of immunocompromised individuals such as neonates, pregnant women, recipients of bone marrow and other organ transplants and individuals with immunodeficiency disorders. The emergence of AIDS in India has necessitated the establishment of reliable tests for diagnosis of cytomegalovirus infection as a damaged immune system permits cytomegalovirus reactivation. The magnitude of this problem in India and the various diagnostic modalities used have not been adequately investigated and, hence, CMV infection is still a major health problem warranting strong preventive measures. The ultimate goal of the prevention program is to develop a vaccine that can be administered to seronegative women of childbearing age to prevent primary infection during pregnancy.

Discrimination between primary and secondary dengue virus infection by using an immunoglobulin G avidity test.

Discrimination between primary and secondary dengue infections is important, as the possibility ofDHF is more in secondary infection. Therefore, there is need to develop a test that can distinguishbetween primary and secondary serological responses. The traditionally-used haemagglutinationinhibition (HI) test, which is recommended by the World Health Organization, is complicated toperform. We standardized an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit with some modifications todiscriminate between primary and secondary dengue infections. Sera from 72 patients with acutedengue infection were tested. Seventy-one of the 72 patients were correctly classified (18 of 18 patientswith primary dengue and 53 of 54 patients with secondary dengue). We conclude that this rapid andsimple test is an excellent alternative to the HI test for discriminating between primary and secondarydengue virus infections during the acute phase of dengue.